Monday 29 January 2018

Nutrition: Carrot spaghetti


Hello back to my blog!

Nutrition has been an inseparable part of this blog as it contributes not only on our physical existence (directly linked to physical self improvement) but plays a crucial role to our wellness through affecting our mental side in various ways. I am REALLY happy to share with you this extremely easy recipe of Carrot Spaghetti!

Why do I love this recipe and not enjoying regular spaghetti instead? First of all, spaghetti have always been the simplest dinner to prepare, a dish pretty easy, cheap and fast (if you are a student you understand very well what I mean 😈 ) and thus we all tend to consume it frequently. Some day I fed up and felt the need to try different options. Now days, you can find on the market not only different formats of pasta but also different tastes as well. Spaghetti with some spinach or carrot taste infused can indeed make a stand but they are still common spaghetti.

If you want to try a different approach on your favorite "pasta dishes" such as carbonara, bolognese, napolitene etc here and then, keep reading.
If you are following a healthier diet trying to reduce flour-based foods or if you overate one day and your caloric intake has not the capacity to host the bomb-calories of spaghetti's carbs also keep reading. If you host a dinner, it is a lovely way to take care of your guests and impress them or use it as a trick to convince your kids to eat veggies. I tried these carrot "spaghetti" several times in many different combinations in order to save all the carb calories and enjoy any sauce i choose free of guilt while still keeping my macros and calories in track. Furthermore, the super little calories of carrot let you enjoy larger quantity than the typical "restaurant portion" recommended for pasta consumption and thus this dish will indeed satisfy your hunger. Last but not least, you will be able to enjoy all the benefits of the carrot itself such as:



Sounds like a win-win situation right? 😉 It is. Here comes the recipe for you. You can follow EXACTLY the same process with zucchini too, I tried it and it tastes equally nice.


You will need:
Carrots and a peeler.

Quantity/Serving:
I used 2 large carrots for one serving. I could use one more, the volume shrinks in a bit after boiling.

 Process:

Wash your carrots and cut the ends. Use your peeler to remove the first layer of skin (throw it away) and then keep peeling in thin pieces (you can choose the width you prefer. For me a medium width similar to tagliatelle worked perfect). The more surface your "spaghetti" have, the more quantity of sauce they will keep on afterwards. If you prefer spaghettini, then you will have one more step to go: cut the pieces into thin vertical lines.

The carrot spaghetti need to be boiled. The first time, I just let them boil the same amount of time as regular spaghetti on strong heat and they almost melted. So they certainly take less time than spaghetti to boil (depending on the thickness you gave them) but also the duration which worked better most of the times was 7-9 minutes. Keep checking to ensure you will achieve the texture of your preference.

Before boiling
Strain your spaghetti and Voila!

I have tasted them with 4-5 different sauces and ALL OF THEM were matching. Most frequent choice has been a tomato based sauce served with feta cheese but you can experiment and add any sauce you would normally choose for regular spaghetti.

As for the sauce displayed in the picture above, I decided to experiment too and try a whole different combination just to check out how it will turn. I used:

(For 1 serving)

  • Chicken breast leftovers (oh yes I never throw away food)
  • 1 tbsp tahini, raw unsalted walnuts
  • Very little milk
  • 1 tsp honey, some raisins
  • a pinch of salt
STEP 1



INSTRUCTIONS FOR THE SAUCE

Step 1: Use the tahini on a heated pan and when it melts, place the chicken breast leftovers (mine were already boiled) to give them a crunchier texture and tahini taste. Up next, it's time to add the raisins and set the heating to medium. Pour a very small amount of milk in your pan and start stirring to make sure that you have the bottom covered in milk but not covering the chicken entirely. 

STEP 2 (before adding the walnuts)









Step 2: Add the honey, salt and keep stirring to mix all the flavors together in the milk, let it thicken and 2-3 minutes before turning the heat off, add the walnuts as well. 

Step 3:  When you get the desired texture, take the pan away, add as much cheese as you prefer (i like A LOT of it - preferably crumbled to blend perfectly into the sauce). Enjoy!



STEP 3: This is the final texture. Then it is ready to serve.


Yum yum yum ❤
That's it! So fast and easy you get this colorful dish ready to enjoy. Some last recommendations: carrot works great with meat, tomatoes, shrimps, mushrooms even milk based sauce and creams (and of course CHEESE). If you try zucchini spaghetti, I personally think that tomato based sauce or anything with taste similar to BBQ (use the proper spices) works better. Also, if you try the sauce I presented above, make sure to taste here and then while making it to ensure if it fits your preference. You might need to add more/less honey depending on your personal taste.

I hope you got as excited as I did while composing this article and you felt motivated to integrate more vegetables and healthy foods in your nutrition. Replacing our usual options with healthier alternatives here and then does really make a difference plus it offers a whole new world of experimenting for you. 
Thank you very much for visiting my blog, feel free to share your thoughts and feedback with me through the contact information provided below. Have a fantastic day! 
Love,
Irina😻


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Wednesday 24 January 2018

Fitness: Workout: Glute Day Challenge

Hello darlings, welcome back to my blog.

Performing Barbell glute bridges , 60kg. 


Here's one more Fitness/workout related article, called "Glute Day Challenge". The story behind this workout is significant and can give you a clue what to expect or why to try this out: In case you follow me on Instagram, you already know that leg day is my absolutely favourite one as my legs are the strongest and most dominant muscle group of my body. I enjoy training my legs because I feel strong enough to perform any workout routine i schedule no matter how challenging it is. On the other hand, this strength comes from the muscular hypertrophy which is excessive on my legs and the more i weight lift, the more muscle I add (quite fast) as a typical mesomorph. This sounds ideal until we consider that all the golden classic exercises which work neat on legs and glutes such as heavy squats (&variations), Romanian dead lifts, lunges, heavy cable kickbacks, leg extensions and curls (not even to mention leg press) stimulate BOTH the quads, hamstrings and glute muscles group etc. The problem with my body is that my legs (especially quads and hamstrings) absorb all the tension and pump INSANELY much, leading to a lot of bulk. (As you can see on the pic)
Hugest leg pump ever. 
The outcome: my legs grow x5 times faster than the rest of my body so lately Leg Days have been of high concern as I do not want to grow them further but I still LOVE weight lifting and I need it to work on the rest of my lower body too. It took a lot of overnight research, a lot of hours on BodyBuilding until I was able to conclude on a Leg/Glute workout using heavy weights which would mostly target my glute area without stimulating too much my legs, at least not as a primary muscle group. Then, I made some variations, added 2 more exercises adjusted the sets and created the session in its final form. I gave it a shot and IT WAS EPIC. It worked pretty good on my body, I could definitely feel it working both during my workout (tons of sweat and burning) and post workout. It was really challenging as I underestimated the exercises a bit and to my surprise it didn't make my quads pump the usual unwanted way. If you face the same issue as I do, If you simply want to take the challenge OR if you want a different workout here and then to shock your muscles and prevent your body getting used to your regular routine, here you go:

Equipment used:

Barbell, weight plates, kettle ball, resistance band. 


Warm up:

Go for 5-7 minute of your regular warm up (avoid HIIT). I had a REALLY LONG power walk as I reached the gym on foot (took half an hour). 


The Challenge:

Weights: Use moderate to heavy weights, adjusted to your own skills and limits. Make sure they will be heavy enough to challenge you but light enough to let you perform a lot of reps.

Sets: I recommend adjusting these to your own level as well. If you are a beginner, it might be better for you to perform this routine on one circle (1 set of each exercise). For intermediates, you can go for 2 full circles with some rest between them. If you try it and you are still going you might be an advanced level so go for the full program I present below. I will write the kg i used as a reference on each exercise.

Explanations: I attached links to every exercise so simply by clicking on it you will be redirected to a page with demonstration and info.



Single leg Body Weight hip thrust : 1 set x 15reps, 2 more sets x12 reps
Kg used: body weight

Copyrights: Marc Jason Locquiao

































Kettle ball swings: 4 sets x 12reps

Kg used: I used a large dumbbell of 15kg as I couldn't find any kettle ball at the gym








Barbell glute bridges: 4 sets x 12-15reps 

Kg used: 60kg . First 2 sets were of 15reps, 3rd was 13reps, 4th was 12reps 

(the exact exercise you can see displayed on the top of my article)




Kg used: bodyweight

(if you want to target your calves too, aim for the raised plie squats displayed below)




American dead lifts: 3 sets x 12reps

Kg used: First set: 60kg , Second and third set: 40kg

(the video i used for this demonstration also explains short and fast the difference between well known Romanian deadlifts and American ones) 



Resistance band standing leg raises: per leg: 2 sets x 20-25reps

Kg used: bodyweight - First set on both legs was 25reps and second was 22reps.

One of my favourite exercises to perform on the go❤


That was it. If you still made it the whole way I congratulate you. I managed to complete the whole session but I was really exhausted. I will keep working my endurance around this routine here and then as a break on my usual lower body workouts. 

You can also try to increase your weights and/or reps throughout the whole workout and perform the last exercise until failure if two sets were not enough to kill your muscles 😈

Do not forget to stretch A LOT and walk a bit (on a flat surface) post workout to help your muscles recover faster. Check out more about stretching and its importance on my relevant article.

Make sure you will fuel up your organism with carbs and protein as soon as possible after finishing your workout to replenish the lost glycogen, help your muscle tissue fibers to repair and get the most out of your training!

I hope you felt inspired to challenge yourself both on your physical and mental evolution. If you try this out, I would love to receive your feedback, impressions, results and statistics. I am glad to read your texts, questions and recommendations on my mailbox and social media so feel free to keep expressing yourselves! Thank you once again for your time here, may your days are filled with achievements, health and productivity. Come back soon.
Hugs,
Irina💋

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Friday 12 January 2018

Health: Fitness/Wellness: HLC Weight loss drink

Hey hey darlings❤

I hope you are all doing well. Today I want to share with you a habit I recently adopted, which is the topic of this article as well. I always knew some recipes for homemade metabolism booster drinks, I have tried a lot of them here and then when I needed a detox (oh yes most of them offer a pretty good cleanse too) but I never used any of these recipes for a period longer than 1-2 days. If you are a loyal follower of my Instagram updates you may have noticed that I am turning more and more to natural ingredients and detox to support my organism and reach my fitness goals. One of my favorite drinkable "hacks" has been the HLC, the initials stand from Honey Lemon Cinnamon, which are the actual ingredients I use to make it. These are ingredients easily found in any household, they are cheap enough and their combination with warm water forms the desired formula.

The instructions and proportions I use are described below:


  • Add 1 tsp of honey in 1/2 glass of boiled water (to help dissolve the honey)
  • Next, pour 1/2 tsp of cinnamon and start stirring well enough to get an even blending of the cinnamon
  • Then, add 2-3 tbsp of lemon juice and some cold water as well to turn the entire drink into a lukewarm temperature. 


I consume this drink EVERY MORNING, on an empty stomach (works ideally if you're on a fast). Of course, as all the natural remedies or even supplements, this is not a Tinkerbell transforming you into a super duper fit person if you keep on eating crappy food and sugars. It is just an extra boost for those who are already on their way to their goals through consistent try and those who are mindful enough to take care of their organisms every day. Since the percentage of lemon in the drink is relatively small, you will not have any issues affecting the stomach acids and as a result this drink is suitable for daily consumption.

On the plus side of the drink is that it includes honey which makes it sweet, reducing the sweet tooth you may face in the morning due to low blood sugar levels caused by the overnight lack of food. Furthermore, all of the ingredients increase the body's metabolic level leading to faster absorption of nutrients (and as a consequence to faster abortion of the toxins and junk). Lemon is well known for its contribution to weight gain prevention and cinnamon is a natural fat burner targeting the abdominal fat more than any other body area. Even if you are on your goal weight and body consistency, I still insist on adding this drink to your daily fluid intake as the benefits of its ingredients do not stop here. Numerous studies have shown that honey, lemon and cinnamon whether consumed separate or combined have tons of benefits for your health. Diabetes, acne, cancer, allergies, inflammations are only a few of the conditions these ingredients can fight. You can check out some of these facts below:
















Thank you so much for visiting my blog again! I hope to catch you here soon, as my blog updates will be more and more frequent! Please feel free to leave me a feedback if you try this remedy and share with me your results and questions. 
Also, my contact information are available below for you to text me and ask/suggest/share your thoughts. I will update this article in a month or so, with my personal impression and feedback/results on it too. 
Have a magical day/night, take care and stay tuned for more posts. Till next time, keep on smiling you lovely spirit!
Much love,
Irina


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Friday 5 January 2018

Fitness: How to recover after a cheat meal/week/period


Hey lovely buddies!😺
Welcome back to my blog💕

This is me performing some light exercises
while watching Vikings
Today's article is another highly requested topic I've been asked about frequently. I'm about to present you my personal guide to recovery after a cheat window (it can be anything from a meal, day,week or longer period). This guide is a sum of all the "hacks"/tricks I personally use and I have noticed they work on me, however none of them is a "magic spell" to kick away the extra pounds within a day or so. They are all small modifications I apply on my daily routine for some time to help my organism detox, function better and gradually reverse the cheat effects while working hard to get back in shape, a healthy state where I can stand solid and work my way up to gains and improvement. Each one of the following tips will be beneficial in some point but the more tips you combine, the greater your health will be restored so I highly insist picking those that are more likely to be applicable in your routine and give it a shot. Important note here: These are general hints, suitable and harmless for people in a relatively healthy state, if you are a person of special health needs (ex. diabetic, gluten intolerant etc) or you suffer from any condition or allergy, please consult  your physician before trying them. So let the fun begin! 😉
First of all : TAKE IT EASY
The mental factor
This is the most important thing to state here. Most of us (myself included occasionally) freak out PRETTY MUCH with the few extra pounds we shed (or sometimes it's just the mental guilt or subliminal fear following up a cheat). This is also applicable to the days/periods of missed workouts, which can spread the panic in combination with crappy eating. The first step we need to make, is to be conscious, see the condition in its true size, spot and admit our "faults" and calm down. Most of the times a meal, a day or even a week of cheats is not enough to ruin our condition to the point of no return the day after. In fact, what you eat today will start showing its results roughly 3 weeks later, so it is not possible to destroy the whole thing the following day. RELAX. The most frequent symptoms that fuel up our panic are the instant bloating, the water retention caused by excessive consumption of salt and/or sugar, the whole discomfort the body goes through due to lack of minerals and nutrients (as the nutritious food has been replaced by unhealthy options) and of course THE DEHYDRATION. I used caps on purpose to focus your attention around it. Dehydration does not occur only because you forgot to drink water. Count down all the fruits and veggies you didn't eat (and their water percentage you missed) plus the amount of alcohol you consumed plus the reduced amount of CLEAR WATER you drunk these days and you get a very common equation leading to a dehydrated organism. Stress is also an "incognito" dehydration cause (under stress, their is a rapid drop in the production of the hormone aldosterone. This hormone plays a key role in the regulation of body's fluid and electrolytes, so reduced amount of it means poor control leading to dehydration. Furthermore, when you stress too much, there is a cortisol elevation which influences insulin imbalance aaaaaaaaand eventually weight gain. So, CHILL OUT. You need to be relaxed and focused if you want to take charge of the problem, otherwise you will not let your body reverse the effects. I guess you are pretty conscious and ready for some action since you are here reading this article, so if you ticked the first note on the list, exhale peacefully and keep reading! 

 Liquid Hacks
Here are some fluids I usually consume here and then in my daily routine but I make sure to drink consistently everyday during my "recovery periods"

  • A LOT OF WATER (the most common but most underrated as well. At first you will be BFF with your toilet but after some time your body will adjust and the WC TOURS will be less.)
  • GREEN TEA (contains a good shot of caffeine, benefits the organism a lot, promotes detoxification and can be used as a good preworkout fluid)
  • VERBENA TEA (another variety of tea, Verbena (or "Luisa" - as commonly called in Greece) tea is highly linked to weight loss. I make sure to drink a large cup of it with a slice of lemon (optionally) every morning)
Starting the day with a cup of verbena tea and a glass of lukewarm soda/lemon water

  • LUKEWARM WATER + SODA + LEMON (EPIC detox fluid, I use it on empty stomach once or twice a week when I need to flush off the toxins. Please be careful with it, do not
    use large amounts of soda and lemon as they react together and do not drink this mixture very often otherwise you will cause an imbalance of your stomach's acids.)
  • DETOX SMOOTHIES (the list here can be quite large - if you follow me on Instagram then you already know what kind of smoothie lover I am). There are thousands of detox recipes out there, whether you go for green smoothies or fruit ones, adopt this habit for some days.
  • COFFEE (coming of coffee beans) => contains a good amount of antioxidants, promotes the increase of body temperature thus it gives a booster before working out or performing an activity which demands high concentration. Do not overdo it.


 Nutrition
Well here's a good point: I consider myself as a QUEEN OF CHEATS but not in the legendary image of someone devouring large burgers and pizza everyday. In addition, I WISH i would be that kind of cheater as I have tracked down the fact that I do not shed a pound If I consume such type of meals, or at least since my diet is relatively clean, consuming such carbs here and then do not really have an impact on my physique. What I suffer from is..... the mighty sugar. I can eat TONS of food, healthy or not, I can have a caloric superplus and still not get a noticeable change. If I eat any sugary snack, I can see a happy bloated Irina waving at me even the following morning. Not even to mention what happens when I repeatedly eat sweets or sugary foods in large amounts for a long period. DIS-AS-TER. Regardless the food group which heavenly gifts you fat, the obvious rule is: Keep It As Clean As Possible. After all, if you swallowed TONS of unhealthy meals the previous days, I don't think you will miss them for the trending week.
 *Click on every description to view more pictures and details, all of the following photos are taken from my personal Instagram page.*

  • EAT A LOT OF GREEN SALADS: It doesn't need to be extra gourmet, these are some of my salad meals on the post holidays recovery period. 

Mushroom, cucumber, egg, pepper and lettuce salad

Greens heaven


Spinach, Pomegranate, Balsamic Vinegar Cream and Fresh Tomato

Pretty Mediterranean Salad

Greens, carrots, tomato, cranberries, seeds, peppers and vinegrate sauce

My favourite salad of boiled turkey, greens mix, pomegranate, balsamic vinegar cream, sunflower seeds and paremsan cheese

Very nutritious and delicious salad.


  • RESTRICT SUGAR/STARCHY CARBS: For some days forget anything made of sugar, white flour, preservatives etc. If you workout, you can have A SMALL SERVING of rice or spaghetti POST WORKOUT but in general avoid it as much as you can.
  • VEGGIES FOR THE WIN: Whether in salads or solo as a snack, they are an excellent source of vitamins, minerals and fibers, they will help you replenish the precious fluids and they will help you satisfy your hunger without taking an eternity to digest them.
  • MODERATE FRUIT CONSUMPTION: Fruits are your allies on health maintenance, personally they are my FAVOURITE food group and thankfully they are a nutritious option no matter what. However, some of them have a high percentage of fructose so they need to be under control during the recovery period. 1-2 servings of fruit + 3 to 4 servings of veggies (or more) per day can be great. 
    Fruit/veggie salad and a cup of verbena tea with lemon
  • BERRIES: All kind of them, cranberries, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries contain precious antioxidants, they promote a metabolic speed up and are a MUST in your diet (not only on your recovery days)
One of my favourite deserts. Click here for more pictures and details

  • CHANGE THE MACRO-RATIO: This might sound a bit "advanced" if you are not familiar with these terms but things are pretty simple. Regardless the percentages of protein, fats and carbohydrates your regular diet consists of, these days you need to INCREASE your LEAN protein consumption a lot, DECREASE the unnecessary carbs (ideally consume them early in the morning and/or around your training) and keep the HEALTHY FAT intake on a steady to slightly increased proportion.
Shrimps and veggies. Click  here for more pictures and details

Homemade Hummus, chicken breast, veggies and 1/2 slice of low fat cheese. Consumed Post workout.You can replace this wrap with a whole wheat one - this is the only one I had at home.Click here for more pictures and details


  • FATS: HEALTHY FATS will help you recover from the stomach/gut inflammation your
    body suffers after an overdose of processed foods or overeating. Aim for fatty fish sources, tahini, seeds, avocado and boiled eggs. If you're into supplements, cod liver oil, Omega 3/6/9 or CLA are all great sources as well. 

  • CALORIES: You don't need to go crazy about it, but have an eye on the level of your caloric intake. Starving yourself will only turn things worse. Aim for an intake close to your maintenance needs with a slight deficit ( of around 200kcal ).


 Further Practises
Get enough sleep. Don't be like me composing this
article during the entire last night.
GET ENOUGH SLEEP: Yes, it is as cliche as the "drink enough water" slogan but IT IS MORE IMPORTANT THAN YOU IMAGINE, and that is the main cause of health problems as the majority of people either ignore/underestimate it or sacrifice it due to their busy schedule. Not even to mention the hormonal imbalances and weight gain caused by the lack of proper sleep. 
INTERMITTENT FASTING: Oh well, this is a HUGE topic which I plan to make an excessive reference to, but on this point, for the purpose I state it here I will just mention a few key things. This is an eating pattern with TONS of benefits on human health, especially if it gets adopted long term. One of these benefits is the reduction of body fat and maintenance/development of muscle tissue. Intermittent fasting is actually an eating pattern with many variations depending on the longterm goal, which does not command what you will eat or how much you will eat but insists  you eating on a specific time window. Of course, it works optimal if you eat whole nutritious foods and you do not eat on caloric superplus (= more than your maintenance needs) but THE KEY of this principle is WHEN you eat your calories. Specifically, all of the variations have one thing in common. Your day is divided in two unequal parts. The one is the fasting part, when you do not eat/drink any calories at all and the other one, called "feeding window" is when all your meals should be consumed. If you make a research you will find out that Intermittent Fasting can be used on a daily basis (as the pattern stated above) or on extended periods (for instance, fasting for 24 hours or longer and eating normally the other days- but this is a whole different story, you need to be familiar with the daily fasting first which means that you have already a basic knowledge around it to do adopt it as a lifestyle so i will keep this short.
For the main purpose of mentioning it here, I will just present the daily fasting pattern with some insights. Once you have a meal, you need 3-4 hours to start digesting it. 8 hours after you finish eating it, you will be on the stage of nutrient absorption and ONLY after 12 hours after this meal (if you didn't consume anything else afterwards) your stomach will be "empty". This means that when your organism needs energy to cover your needs, first of all it will try using the energy provided from your food. If this is not available, then it will try the glycogen of your muscles (causing catabolism of the tissue -> that's why you should NOT starve yourself). The last deposit of energy your organism will turn to is STORED FAT. This tank becomes AVAILABLE ONLY when you are on a fasted state (which means at least 12hours of no calorie intake). Whatever activity you perform from this point will be powered by your stored fat. The BEST way to use this function for your own benefit is to be as much active as  you can while being on fasted state. An IDEAL pattern to try working on is fasting for 16 hours in a row and then consuming all your meals within the 8 remaining hours. It might sound harsh but if you consider it a bit further, you are supposed to sleep AT LEAST 8 hours plus you should not eat later than 3 hours before you sleep. Summing this, you are supposed to fast (not eat) for at LEAST 12 hours per day either way.{8+3=11}. Try consuming your last meal 4 hours before you sleep and postpone/skip your first meal right after waking up. That will be enough to make it on a 16 hour fast. As you start using your stored fat as an energy source only after 12 hours of fasting, these remaining 4 hours before you finally have your first meal should be used to perform the most intensive activities to maximize the fat burn benefit. An optimal recommendation is to fit your workout 1-2 hours before you consume your first meal. You will not only take a huge benefit of the function stated above but once you are done, it will be just on time to replenish your glycogen stores, nourish your body with food and feel super energized for the rest of the day. The feeling of not binge eating the entire day will be a bit frustrating or annoying the first two days but from day 3 your organism will adjust and you will be surprised that all the food thinking is gone. If you have further questions feel free to ask me or look it up.
This T-shirt has been my favourite health shoutout.

 CARDIO: 
An important chapter here, cardio should always be a part of your health routine, not
only for fat burrning but for the further benefit it offers too. It varies from low forms such as walking or just taking the stairs, to medium forms (like power working or LISS- Steady pace low intensity exercise for extended time) up to HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training). No matter the form you use (depending on your goals, needs and body composition), if you're interested in burning fat, my BEST advice is to go for some cardio 5 times per week until you lose the desired amount of fat. You can keep exercising with weights or any other method you prefer but make sure to go for 2 HIIT sessions (elevated heart rate from points of 90+% for a very short time followed up by reduced intensity and heart rate around 65% of your maximum beats for longer time) per week and 3 sessions of low intensity exercise. HIIT can be 25 minute sessions and LISS can be anything from 35mins to 1hour. Low intensity cardio is pretty safe, can not cause overtrain, it is applicable to any person and can give you a good amount of calories burned without making your legs pump. Linked to the previous bullet, the IDEAL time to perform your cardio is while being on fasted state (12+hours of not eating). The second ideal time is to perform it RIGHT AFTER your weight training, when the glucogen stores in your muscles are empty so the only available source of energy is stored fat. In the past, I tried the best possible scenario of having my weight training on fasted state AND hitting my cardio right after but this didn't work smoothly - at least for me. I was able to workout on a fasted steady but heavy weights followed up by cardio were TOO MUCH for my body to afford so I figured out that what works best for me is to split them. Going for fasted cardio in the morning will cover the hour gap to complete my fasting window, it will be done before i even "wake up properly" and I will have some meals to fuel me up with energy in order to have a great weight session later in the day. In that case, I make sure to workout late in the afternoon or early in the evening so that my last meal before fasting again will be my legendary postworkout meal which will keep me full for a good amount of time.


 SAUNA: 1-2 times per week is enough. Be very careful with the exposure and the fluid consumption around your sessions. Always consult your physicial about it.
That's it guys! These have been my personal insights on how do I recover from the side effects of crappy eating or getting out of plan! I hope you found what you were looking for ^_^ Mix and match as many of these tips in your daily routine, work as hard as you can and be calm and patient, great and sustainable things take time, require effort but everything pays off. Let me know your thoughts, results and feel free to contact me for any question or recommendation! I wish you all a wonderful year full of gainz! Take care❤
Hugs,
Irina


CONTACT INFORMATION


Emails :
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Facebook page : 
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Twitter :
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Skype :

irina.alexopoulou

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